Leaving, on a jet plane

If you're reading this, then I have managed to survive what we will officially call, "The Crappiest Week Ever-2000s Edition."

Comment

By Rena Leisure

The Carmi Times - Carmi, IL

By Rena Leisure

Posted Oct. 5, 2012 at 3:00 PM
Updated Oct 5, 2012 at 3:23 PM

By Rena Leisure

Posted Oct. 5, 2012 at 3:00 PM
Updated Oct 5, 2012 at 3:23 PM

If you're reading this, then I have managed to survive what we will officially call, "The Crappiest Week Ever-2000s Edition."

In order to truly appreciate the level of hard my week was, you must first understand one important fact: I was one of "those" mothers. When Jena was a baby, I didn't leave her.

Ever.

We did the all-sleep-together-family-bed thing. During the day, I wore her in a Moby wrap for hours at a time. And the first time I even considered a baby sitter, James and I had flown home so my family could watch her while we went out for our anniversary, and I ended up chickening out and having our "date" at home with her.

In retrospect, it would have been easy to do things a little differently, but I don't think I would have. Every Mom has reasons for the decisions they make with their children, and I had mine, as well.

As Jen got bigger, I relaxed. A little. But even through her toddler years, I didn't leave her often. When Southwest Airlines announced their Facebook friends sale this year-super, crazy cheap tickets if you flew on specific days-and I realized that the dates available wouldn't work for me, the idea that James might go home without me and visit his family popped immediately into my head.

It did not occur to me at the time that he would want to take Jena with him. Without me.

Here's the thing; I know exactly what kind of father James is, but even understanding that he's involved in fatherhood on a level beyond my sphere of experience, doesn't mean it doesn't still surprise me.

Obviously, I grew up in Southern Illinois in the 1980s. And the culture of parenthood that is my mental version of "normal" has Mommies and Daddies each with specific roles. Yes, I realize times have changed, but in the back of my mind, it still surprises me a little when James offers to do things like take Jena to a doctor's appointment alone or volunteer at the library in her school.

Take her to soccer practice, sure. Offer to build something for her parade float, absolutely. Those are "Daddy" things, but the other stuff-my hindbrain files them in the area of "Mommy" activities.

When James announced that he and Jena would go home for a week to visit family without me, it threw me for a loop. Because traveling alone with a four-year-old, that was most definitely not an approved activity in the "Stuff Daddy Does" area of my mind.

But they did it. For weeks leading up to their trip, I fretted and worried and generally tried to wrap my mind around the idea of being away from my kid for seven nights. Honestly, it was touch and go whether I'd really let her leave or not right up to the moment I dropped them at the airport.

Page 2 of 2 - In the end, I manned up and let them both go. And they had a great trip. And even though it was a hard, hard week, I made it through.